In Today\u2019s post we will learn how to test your soil for\ndrainage and list out 10 things you should add into your garden soil to make it\na perfect well draining potting mix favourable for healthy plant growth. We\nwill also include some cheap alternatives in this list. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Before we start, lets look into:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What is a\nWell Draining Soil?<\/strong> We will demonstrate you a Simple Test to check whether your\nsoil is the perfect well draining soil, at the end. Before that, 10. Peat\nMoss:<\/strong> Peat moss is organic dead fibrous material which makes your\nsoil well draining. It has an acidic PH and hence very useful for acid loving\nplants. But the problem is it\u2019s bit expensive and may not be suitable for\nalkaline ph loving plants. Its best use is in seed starting mix. It\u2019s usually mixed\nwith compost and it holds moisture and nutrients for a longer time and helps\nseed germination. Peat pellets like these are available which are great for\nstarting seeds!<\/p>\n\n\n\n 9. Perlite:<\/strong> Perlite is another natural substance – an\namorphous volcanic glass and sometimes called volcanic popcorn. When you look\nat perlite under a microscope, you would see that it\u2019s quite porous and this\nproperty aids in making the soil well-draining and well aerated. Perlite forms\na great stuff for making indoor potting mix and seed starting mix. But you\ncannot adding perlite alone to garden soil or compact soil because it easily\ngets crushed to powder on pressure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 8. Pumice:<\/strong> This is\nanother natural substance. The main advantage of this substance is it overcomes\nthe problem of perlite, which gets crushed into powder on pressure when mixed\nwith garden soil. So pumice in this case is the best option. Garden Pumice or\nhorticultural pumice is available in various grades or sizes and a very useful\ningredient in succulent potting mix.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 7. Vermiculite:<\/strong> This is\nanother naturally obtained substance with a neutral PH. It holds lot of moisture\nand makes a well draining soil. It will not rot or degrade or mold and is\nnon-toxic and sterile which makes it a good option in a seed starting mix. This is great for water loving plants because\nit holds lot of moisture. So be careful or better not use it in a succulent potting\nmix. There are different grades of vermiculite available for gardening. You can\nuse a lower size grade for making your seed starting mix along with other stuff\nlike peat moss or cocopeat. If you are using this alone to mix with garden\nsoil, you should mix like 1 part to 3 parts soil.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 6. Coco peat:<\/strong> It\u2019s the\nmost widely used growing medium which is obtained and processed from coconut\nfibres. This is available as ready to mix powder or in compact bricks which can\nbe easily reconstituted by mixing with water to expand into lots and lots of\nvolume of cocopeat. It has a slightly acidic ph of around 6 which is very much\nfavourable for most plants. Depending on the requirement or the plant you are\ngrowing, You can mix 1 part to 2 parts soil \u2013 that\u2019s one third or 2 parts to 2\nparts soil \u2013 that\u2019s 50 percent, especially for making indoor potting mix or\nterrace gardening mix to make it a light weight potting mix. For seed\ngermination, you can use cocopeat alone or add some 20 to 30 percent compost in\nit to support the seedlings until transplant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 5. Compost:\n<\/strong>Yes adding compost like decomposed cow dung or horse dung or even leaf\ncompost and special compost like vermicompost is not only indispensable for\nplant growth but this also makes your soil less compact and well draining. But\nadding other stuff like perlite, vermiculite, cocopeat or peat moss along with\ncompost makes the soil more suitable for healthy growth of plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 4. Sand:<\/strong> Adding\nconstruction or river sand is another option if you do not want to purchase\nperlite or vermiculite or peat moss. Remember not to use sea sand or beach sand\nfor your plants. The major drawback with sand is it can make your soil drain\nout too quickly specially if you add more than 30 percent to soil. But this\ntype of mix is very much favourable for succulents and cacti but not to other\nplants. Another problem is soil compaction over a period of time which can make\nit concrete like and difficult for the plants. So, generally add no more than\n10 percent or max 20 percent sand into potting mix for most plants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. Brick\nPowder:<\/strong> Some gardeners suggest adding brick granules or coarse red\nbrick powder makes soil well draining and well aerated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. Gypsum\npowder<\/strong> is another alternative to mix with compacted soils which effectively changes the structure and fertility of heavy clay\nsoils. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 1. Shredded Bark, Twigs and Saw\nDust: <\/strong>No doubt,\nthese make your soil well draining! But at the same time they steal nitrogen\nfrom the soil in the process of their decomposition. So if you are adding these\nstuff into potting mix or for mulching, make sure you mix lot of supplements to\nsupply nitrogen to your plant and prevent its deficiency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Now Finally! A Simple and\na rough Test to check whether your soil is perfectly well draining. <\/p>\n\n\n\n When you add water to your container, I mean after thoroughly watering your plant, it should drain out from the drainage hole in about 1 to 2 minutes, neither quicker nor too late.
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\nWell-drained soil is a soil where water drains out at a medium rate \u2013 neither\ntoo quickly nor too slowly. We all know that, If the soil is too wet, plant\nroots fail to get the oxygen they need and they tend to rot and the plant dies.\nIf the soil has too much air pockets and if it drains out too quickly, plant\nroots dry out which again is not good for plant growth.
\nCompacted clay soil is an example of a poorly draining soil, whereas Sandy soil\nis an example of a fast draining soil.
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\nSo, in order to make the perfect or near perfect well draining soil, you need soil\namendment and adding one or more of certain stuff or ingredients to your garden\nsoil in proper proportions. Neither too less nor too much.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\nLet\u2019s list out the top 10 things you should add into your potting soil to\nachieve this goal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Happy Gardening!<\/p>\n\n\n\n